Microsoft opens widget marketplace for Vista and Windows Live

Microsoft Points is the currency Microsoft uses for transactions in the XBOX Live environment. And now it’s branching out.

If Microsoft can get wide acceptance for Microsoft Points it will be a very, very powerful way for them to increase revenue – and by offering more and more Microsoft Services that are available via points (and now third party applications) they will branch out.

I’m just waiting for the first time a non-Microsoft web site asks me if I would rather pay with PayPal, Credit Card, or Microsoft Points. I bet it happens in the next year.

Microsoft opened a new online marketplace last night to sell a new class of desktop and web applications directly to consumers. The new version of Windows Live Gallery extends the existing Windows Live Gold partnership program with premium content listings, partner storefronts, and the ability to charge Microsoft’s users for each new widget. Microsoft’s widget marketplace uses the same Microsoft Points currency system as Xbox Live Marketplace and Zune Marketplace. The new gallery site also includes the ability to rate reviews (“4 out of 5 people found this review helpful”) and widget developers featured on the front page of the site.